Death On Ice IC

[Tome]

You wake, a biting chill greeting your return to consciousness.

Beneath you, the ground is cold and somehow yielding. Your first twitching motion confirms it with a soft crunching sound - snow compacting. You can feel the cold seeping quickly into you even as the snow begins to melt.

At the very least, it soothes the pounding in your head.

No, not just your head. Every part of you, inside and out, is touched by the awful ache that seems to have been driven into your very bones. Your limbs feel heavy and leaden, weary in a way that seems strangely alien to you.

As the chill takes the worst edge of the ache, you feel four others nearby. You are not quite sure how, but they feel familiar. Safe, to a certain extent. Allies, at the very least.

You hear the wind stir, and the added chill makes you acutely aware of your lack of possessions. Including clothes. It really is most terribly cold, lying face down in the snow like this.

No matter how much the pain in your head insists otherwise, you will need to move soon, lest you freeze to death.

Painfully, you open your eyes. The glare of reflected sunlight blinds you for a moment and you shield your eyes until it passes.

Looking warily about, you take stock of your surroundings. A clearing of undisturbed snow lies about you, bound at the edge by a dense forest of snow-covered trees. Mostly pines and other evergreens. The sun hangs above you, cold and distant in a mostly cloudless sky.

Somewhere nearby a crow caws.

Where are you?

You cannot remember. Nor can you remember where you were before. Or anything at all. You cast your mind back, trying to recall something, anything, of your past, who you are, where you came from or how you came to be here, but it as if your past has been scoured clean. You look, and there is nothing.

No, there, at the edges of your dimmest recollection, is the faint murmur of something. A word? A name. Is it yours?

[Rokku]

"Mara."

Mara rose slowly, blazing scarlet hair and golden bronzed skin standing out in stark contrast to the pure white of the snow all around her. This... well she had no idea where this was, but she was sure it wasn't right.

A chill wind cut through her and her entire body shook, something that might have been quite pleasant to anyone watching. She'd barely registered her nudity. If it wasn't for the freezing cold, Mara was quite certain it wouldn't have bothered her at all. She looked around at the other four, people she felt she knew, even if she didn't know any more about them than she did herself.

"Hey, everyone," she said in a voice that was surprisingly soft and sweet given the conditions, "we must move, find shelter and hopefully clothes. Does anyone know how to do that?"

[Shade Kerrin]

"Heath.....Heath?...Yeah, I'll take Heath...urch..."
'Heath' shudders a bit before slowly getting on to his hands and knees, then rising to his full height above everyone.
"I..don't think I know. Nothing around but trees and a bird."
At this point he begins to stretch and limber up, readying himself to warm up the only way he knows

[Orzamil]

He was cold. Freezing, frigid, and probably dying. Every inch of his body in every dimension was feeling the icy terrain so sharply that he felt like he was on fire. Some part of him knew that was good, at least. If he stopped feeling the fire, it was already too late.

He stirred. He...who? Who was he? He was confused, and he was cold, but that didn't tell him his name. Unless his name was cold. Was it? He couldn't remember his name. He couldn't remember...anything. Why couldn't he remember? What was wrong?

For a few moments, he banged around his head, rattling the bars of his mental cage. He felt like he didn't belong inside his own head. He needed to be outside of it, outside of his skull. Why did it feel so foreign and strange in his own head?

I have to get up, the thought came to him. Why did he have to get up? Oh, right, because he would die otherwise. The cold would apparently do that after awhile. He wasn't sure how he knew that, but it felt certain. Certain enough, at least, that he didn't want to risk sticking around in the cold to find out.

He cracked his eyes open, finding the area particularly inhospitable. He looked around, seeing the others getting up, and could barely hear their voices. Reaching up to his ears, he felt them still there, they were just incredibly cold. Still there? Odd thought to have, since he couldn't exactly remember existing until just a few minutes ago.

Sammie. The thought came unbidden to him. Was that his name? The pain in his head kept him from thinking too much. He shook it, the muscles in his neck aching from the frozen fire piercing him to his very soul.

"I...don't know what I know. But we should get out of here. Too cold. Probably going to die." Sammie slowly stood, stretching muscles that refused to stretch, straining to the point where it felt like they would snap and shatter.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Cold... cold was the only thing he could feel at the moment, his arms and legs felt numb, like they didn't belong to him, he had endured worse though, or had he? He couldn't remember... what was he doing here? Better question, Where was here?.

Slowly incorporating himself he checks his surrounding finding four more figures around him, three men and a woman, somehow he feels like he knows the; but how could that be if he doesn't even know his own name.

Suddenly, something in the back of his head whispers to him... Leo, is that his name? Yes, he knows it and it give a little comfort in the chilling wind. He turns towards the woman

[COLOR="rgb(47, 79, 79)"]Finding shelter? No, I do not know, but perhaps we should start moving.[/COLOR]

As his companions debate on what to do or how they are going to die, Leo takes a moment to focus, expanding his life energy trying to sense if they are truly as alone as they seem.

Spoiler

Show

Ki Detection check
(1d100+112)[98](210)

[Bunny of Faith]

"Where am I?" He said quietly, lifting himself off of the ground and looking at the surrounding area with confusion. Nothing but snow and trees for as far as the eye can see.

He examined his shivering figure briefly, pale and aching all over though nothing he recognised, before attempting to rub his hands together for warmth. Unsatisfied with the results, he wrapped them around his chest and turned to the other figures he had heard speak.

"Shelter sounds good, and so do clothes. Do any of you know how we got here? Only, I can't seem to recall anything..." he trails off, then shakes his head, "No, that's a lie. My name is Marius, I think."

[Shade Kerrin]

"Know nothing...Nothing of everything. I'll be Heath 'til I know better."
Heath is now well into his warmup routine, and although he is attentive enough to engage in conversation, he's really making too much noise himself to hear anything more subtle.
"Anyone know where that bird was? I think that bird call meant...something important."

[Orzamil]

"It's quiet. The trees are dead and there are no animals. None except for the crows. Hundreds of crows. Oh gods, why are there so many crows?" Sammie resisted saying, 'It's quiet. Too quiet.' He wasn't sure why, but it felt like a cliché. The important thing though, was all of the crows. There were so many, hiding among the branches.

The pain in Sammie's head grew as he stared at the crows, his pulse beating against his skull like a madman with a drum. He rubbed his temples with his fingers, his palms on his cheeks, and tried to watch all of the crows at once. While he could see most of them, it wasn't enough. The pounding in his head grew louder and faster until it felt like it would crack open. Metaphorically, it did.

Sammie reached out, not with his hands, but with something else, something...unseen. Attempting to touch the birds with his mind he tried to find them, find all of them, maybe even reach out to them. He wanted all of them inside of his head.

Spoiler

Show

Area Scanning:
(1d100+120)[59](179)

[Dusk Eclipse]

Something is moving over those trees, we should get moving. Leo points towards the moving figures when the hunger hits him; but not it isn't his hunger it comes... from the Crows!.

Those things aren't crows... and they are hungry and worse they are surrounding us.

[Tome]

As if announcing their presence had released them from some binding, hundreds of crows begin to emerge from the woods in some great wave of black feathers and raucous cawing. They don't attack for now, coming to rest on the trees. As soon as the last crow is perched, every last one of them falls silent.

As one, the murder gazes at you in silence. Those eyes are not the eyes of some dumb animal - something else lurks behind them.

One of the crows opens it's beak, and words spill forth. "Raw, found you" it caws. Then a second crow speaks, "Found you". A third, a fourth a fifth and so on until the clearing is filled with the din of hundreds of distorted voices uttering the same two words. "Foundyoufoundyoufoundyoufoundyoufoundyoufoundyoufo undyoufoundyou".

Then, with one last squawk of "Found you", the murder falls silent again. Hundreds of birds gaze down at you in silence, eyes filled with malice and hunger.

"Raw, traitors. Found you".

Spoiler

Show

The clearing is about 60 feet in diameter, with the crows perched on every available branch you can see at the edge.

They haven't attacked - yet.

[Bunny of Faith]

Marius winces, eyes shut as he stumbles back away from the birds and lifts his hands up to cover his ears in a feeble attempt not to be deafened by the creatures' approach. He waits until the sound seems to have stopped, slowly blinking his eyes open.

"Well, at least they've st-" any further words are cut off as the crows begin again, as he resorts to simply jamming his fingers into his ears.

"That can't be normal." He mutters, pointing to the nearest creature and making a small gesture with his hand.

Spoiler

Show

Let's see! Basic Analyze Soul. (1d100+90)[61](151)

[Rokku]

Without thinking about it, Mara planted her feet at shoulder width in the snow: a classic horse stance.

"Leave us be, crows," she said her tone cautiously neutral, "unless you plan on leading us to shelter and food. You could easily become the latter."

She thrust a finger out at the nearest of the birds for emphasis, and was surprisingly unsurprised when flames danced along the extended digit.

[Tome]

The crows seem less than impressed by Mara's bravado. The fire, however, seems to catch their attention. They seem worried, hesitant, but only for a moment.

A ripple passes through the assembled murder, their eyes now focused chiefly on Mara with malevolent intent, and one crow squawks "Caw, eat your eyes, traitors!". With that, the crows take flight, hurling themselves into the air and towards your group as an unstoppable tide of hate and black feathers.

They descend on you, darting beaks trying to slip inside your guard and peck out your eyes. Those who cannot go for your eyes content themselves by clawing at your exposed skin with talons that unnaturally sharp.

Spoiler

Show

Combat initiated!

The Murder, Those Who Feast Upon The Dead
Initiative: (1d100+60)[54](114)

The Murder moves as a passive action and performs an area attack against you all.
Attack VS Mara: (1d100+60)[72](132)
Attack VS Marius: (1d100+60)[34](94)
Attack VS Leo: (1d100+60)[4](64)
Attack VS Sammie: (1d100+60)[90](150)
Attack VS Heath: (1d100+60)[11](71)

Roll your defences and make your attacks, it's time to work out the kinks in the combat system. Bear in mind the nature of your opponent, as certain forms of attack may be more effective than others.

[Shade Kerrin]

Spoiler

Show

Defence: (d100+85)[177]
Offence: (d100+95)[128]
Open/Fumble: (d100)[67],(d100)[66],(d100)[75]

Mechanical description: Heath will Block-defend against all those little beaks, and if successful will generate his Bardiche and swing back at them. If he fails, his miraculously always full strength accumulation will instead be used defensively, creating his armor to gain AT 4 against the next wave

Edit: Question to the GM would be, could I get the +85 Counter bonus I achieved on this weapon attack?
Edit2: Ki pool: 60/68, -2/turn
Edit3: Final attack score 213, Damage rating 80(50Base,+10Qual, +20str*2)

Heath stares at the birds as they stare back, until their sudden switch to aggression. He swings his long arms to bat them away once, twice, then his instinct takes over on the third swing as he materializes the blade he somehow knows will come to his aid. His fourth swing is a lot heavier, and comes complete with a long axe-like blade to back it up.

[Bunny of Faith]

Spoiler

Show

Let's get this show on the road.
Initiative: (1d100+55)[32](87)
Basic Magic Shield: (1d100+90)[33](123) - I don't think I have to roll this, but better safe than sorry.
PsR check: (1d100+35)[74](109)
Defence roll: (1d100+90)[89](179)

Probably should have thrown that up before we fought, but oh well. As it's a passive action, I think that means I can cast it before I'm stabbed in the face? - Seems I can!

Too unprepared to attack, Marius lifts his arms up as if to block the creatures from getting at his face. The birds fall short however, as a translucent purple barrier shimmers into existence around him.

"They're all being controlled by a single spirit! Be careful!" He shouts, hoping the others can hear him over the noise of the crows.

[Orzamil]

Spoiler

Show

Initiative:
(1d100+65)[16](81)

Energy Shield (Maintaining after this):
Pote: (1d100+120)[15](135)
Proj: (1d100+85)[82](167)

Energy Discharge:
Pote: (1d100+120)[91](211)
Proj: (1d100+85)[14](99)

He could feel them coming, the birds. Although he couldn't get a feel on an individual one, he could feel the mass of them, a flying, squawking, pecking, angry, hungry, mass of birds. They were coming, and they were coming for blood.

Reflexively, he threw up a barrier of pure power to protect himself, the birds impacting upon it. He could feel the hits, feel the shield weakening even as he held it up, but it held.

Anger started to seethe inside of him. He didn't know where he was, he didn't even know who he was, and now a bunch of demonic birds were saying they'd found him and were trying to eat him? What was this bull****! His anger roiled and raged, and he reached out mentally, flinging bolts of power at the birds near him.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Spoiler

Show

Sorry for not posting before, I've had a really buy weekend so far
Initiative (1d100+70)[85](155)
Dodge (1d100+95)[1](96)
Attack 1 (1d100+95)[78](173)
Aditional Weapon Attack (1d100+85)[28](113)
Open/Fumblr (1d100)[13]/(1d100)[89]

The "shadow daggers" are my Natural weapons, they cost 5 generic ki points (pool now is 43/48) and have base of 40+str 10+ 10 aura extension=60 damage and ignore 2 AT.

Weaving and dodging between the flurry of talons and beaks Leo willed his Ki into physical form, liquid shadow seemed to sprung from his arms, quickly taking the shape of wickedly curved daggers. Armed with them Leo struck at the crows.

Hearing Marius' warning he immediatly answered Can you pinpoint the puppet master?

[Rokku]

Mara twisted and spun as the birds struck, crimson hair swirling around her naked form as she left the crows only air to strike. As she twirled, the flames flickering along her fingertips roared into horrible life, suddenly dancing over her entire body. Hungry for fuel, they lashed out from her in a burning spiral, taking any of the crows fool enough to come within its reach.

Spoiler

Show

Copying from the OOC, Mara dodges with a 174, then rolls an initiative of 135. She moves a quarter of her speed to the best position she can get, then accumulates ki and spends Power ki on An AoE of Heat damage. 2 points for a 3 foot radius, or 4 for a 15 foot radius. The latter only if she can do so without burning any of the other PCs. The attack roll is a rather sad 115 and the damage rating is 65.

[Tome]

Magical barriers, conjured weapons and bursts of flame serve well to defend yourselves from the crows, forcing them back with nothing more than the most minor of scratches.

Many a feathered body lies broken or charred upon the snow, the smell of cooked crow now prominent. But for every crow you cut down there are still more waiting for their chance.

Seeing the futility of their assault, the crows tear away from the doomed melee. Moving as a much denser, more tightly coordinated flock, they fly as one, looping off into the sky and back around to build up speed.

Spoiler

Show

Defence VS Leo 1 (1d100)[91] Damage 48
Defence VS Leo 2 (1d100)[69] Damage 30
Defence VS Mara (1d100)[64] Damage 9
Defence VS Heath (1d100)[60] Damage 65

Initiative (1d100+60)[44](104)
Damage Taken: 152

The Murder withdraws from combat, moving to a position roughly 30 feet in the air as it readies it's next attack.

Let's hope you can do a bit more to it this round, eh?

[Orzamil]

Anger started to seethe inside of Sammie. He didn't know where he was, he didn't even know who he was, and now a bunch of demonic birds were saying they'd found him and were trying to kill him? What was this bull****! His anger roiled and raged, and he reached out mentally, flinging bolts of power at the birds.

Spoiler

Show

Initiative:
(1d100+65)[116]

Energy Discharge:
Pote: (1d100+120)[189]
Proj: (1d100+85)[171]

[Rokku]

A fierce grin breaks out across Mara's features. Something about this fight felt good and right to her. She continued her graceful battle-dance, red and orange flame arcing out to trail her movements, and blast away the carrion birds.

Spoiler

Show

15 Foot Fire AoE (1d100+80)[75](155) Damage 65 Heat.

[Shade Kerrin]

Spoiler

Show

Init: (d100+30)[90](40 base, -10 +5Bardiche)
Offence: (d100+95)[193] Final Result 230, Damage 80
Open/Fumble: (d100)[37],(d100)[67]

Mechanical description: Heath will attempt to make a slash at the birdies before they leave his range. Otherwise, nothing. In either case, though, he will summon his armor to reinforce against the next hits.
Although, retreating in Anima is hard. Unless the birds have something to negate it, they should provoke an attack from all they had engaged, at Flanking penalties no less. Do they do that?
Ki pool: 55/68, -4/turn

Heath continues to make wide arcs with his blade as the crows spiral around him, making one last slash at them before they retreat. The mass they form fills him with an instinctive dread, though. He knows something big is coming, and calls forth his white plating to shield from the many blows coming.

[Bunny of Faith]

Spoiler

Show

Initiative: (1d100+55)[99](154)
Intermediate Sphere of Destruction projection rolls:
(1d100+90)[2](92)+Fumble Roll=25 (Base Damage 30)
(1d100+90)[30](120) (Base Damage 30)
(1d100+90)[53](143) (Base Damage 30)
Fumble roll/PsR check

"I don't think so! It's inside all of them!"

Noticing the creatures retreat, Marius makes three quick gestures in the air. Three black spheres form in the air outside of his shield, shooting towards the mass of crows.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Spoiler

Show

Since the Ki detection score is calculated using Notice I'll assume it is also a passive action (My non-internet DM rules it as passive action; but I couldn't found anything in the books that specify if it is passive or Active)
Initiative: (1d100+90)[15](105) (my initiative increase due the +20 initiative of my natural weapons.
Attack 1: (1d100+95)[51](146)
Attack 2: (1d100+85)[40](125)
Ki Perception once more trying to sense the one controlling the crows (I'll use 2 two fatigue points to increase my roll) (1d100+147)[72](219)
Open/Fumble:(1d100)[59](59)/(1d100)[33](33)
This assumes I go before the crows retreat, if I go after them I'll post again altering my actions.

Leo continues his attacks, slashing through the murder of crows; but during a brief lull in battle he once again extends his senses, his life force trying to find who or what is controlling those damnable birds.

[Tome]

Even as more dead crows rain down, many fried to ash by Sammie's bursts of lighting, the Murder dives at Mara as one raucus mass. Tearing towards and past her as fast as they can go, unnaturally sharpened beaks and seemingly insignificant claws lash out at her exposed flesh.

You note as it passes by that the flock is noticeably smaller now - perhaps almost half it's original size. You swear you can almost taste your impending victory, though that could always be burnt crow.

Spoiler

Show

Defence VS Marius (1d100)[4], 57 Damage
Defence VS Mara (1d100)[59], 58 Damage
Defence VS Sammie (1d100)[23], 140 Damage
Defence VS Leo 1 (1d100)[40], 40 Damage
Defence VS Leo 2 (1d100)[72], 20 Damage

Initiative (1d100+60)[37](97)
Damage Taken: 467

The Murder makes a flyby attack on Mara, ending it's move 20 feet in the air just above the opposite side of the clearing.

Attack (1d100+75)[6](81), 60 Base Impact Damage

Leo's Ki Detection

Spoiler

Show

You find no external presence connected to the birds.

However, you can confirm that the presence of the birds themselves - and make no mistake, there may be many bodies but there is only one mind present among them - is something unnatural and wretched. Overtures of decay and stillness ply your senses as you feel it's nature.

[Orzamil]

Sammie ducks, even though the crows weren't going for him. He turns towards them as they fly past in their attack, thrusting a hand forward and sending out more lightning.

Spoiler

Show

Init: [rollv]1d100+65[/rollv] 22

Energy Discharge:
Pote: (1d100+120)[68](188)
Proj: (1d100+85)[18](103)

[Shade Kerrin]

Init: (d100+40)[129]

Spoiler

Show

Offense: (d100+95)[184], Base damage 70
Defense: (d100+47)[54]
Open/Fumble: (d100)[84],(d100)[16],(d100)[13]

Mechanical:Heath will wait until the crows approach anyone within his passive movement range(20ft), then move to intercept and make an attack of his own. At this stage, he is performing the Absorb Hits defense style, halving his defense but negating hitstun, along with the Push Speed maneuver to bring his weapon's Init to +0
Ki pool: 51/68, -4/turn

As Heaths slashes continue to fall on the empty air behind the birds, he realizes that he will never be able to hit them on their terms. Instead, he stops to watch their motions, preparing to intercept them as they pick their next target.

[Rokku]

Spoiler

Show

From the OOC Dodge 98, Initiative 143

Mara dances around the diving birds, flames trailing her every step. As they ascend, she pulls the flames inward compressing them until she's left with naught but a blazing point of light held in a single hand.

The instant the crows stop he thrusts that hand forward and her compressed power explodes in a torrent of angry red-gold flame racing towards the crows like a hungry predator.

Spoiler

Show

Accumulate Ki, spend 4 power Ki for a 30 foot Long-Distance Attack. Taking -10 to use the Heat damage type. (1d100+80)[5](85)

[Dusk Eclipse]

Spoiler

Show

Initiative(1d100+90)[24](114)
Attack 1 (1d100+95)[74](169)
Attack 2 (1d00+85)[1](86)
Dodge (1d100+95)[84](179)

Assuming Leo goes before the crows, he delays until they act to move his passive movement (Movement type 10) to try an intercept their attack by attacking them.
Edit: My fumble roll from the OOC thread is 31

Leo cautiously studies the birds movement, waiting for the moment of their attack launching himself towards them with his blades ready to strike them once more.

[Bunny of Faith]

Spoiler

Show

Initiative: (1d100+55)[34](89)
Intermediate Sphere of Destruction projection rolls, again: (Base Damage 30)
(1d100+90)[17](107)
(1d100+90)[26](116)
(1d100+90)[100](190)+43=233
PsR check: (1d100+35)[62](97)

Marius glances over at Sammie in suprise as he watches the other man blast the birds with lightning. He turns back to look at the birds, a rather calm expression on his face as he sends out another volley of dark orbs towards the crows.